Give Them Hell
by TheOnlyPotato
Summary: Or, Haymitch goes into the arena and suffers through the Jabberjay hour.


**_Jabberjays_**

"Peeta, you need to drink," Effie Trinket pressures her fellow mentor, nudging the cold glass near his lips. He'd been in a state between devastation and anger, ever since Haymitch had snapped his arm to keep him from volunteering at the reaping. He was coherent enough to bathe and eat and such, but only if told and only because he needed to assist in mentoring Katniss and Haymitch. Recently however, when Katniss and Haymitch had met up with the rest of the discussed clique, he'd begun to fade further from his frivolous escort's proverbial grasp.

Peeta barely pays attention as Effie tips the cool liquid into his mouth - sweet tasting orange juice. A bit too sweet and familiar tasting, actually. Poor Peeta realizes the juice is spiked a moment too late and looks to Effie in the same betrayal he looked to Katniss in when she'd done something similar to him in his Games. The escort feels guilty, but his face becomes calm and his head falls on the armrest.

Effie's guilt doesn't last long, because soon he's napping on the couch and looking more peaceful than he has in weeks. This does mean she's left up alone with Portia though and Effie's best friend isn't much company anymore. She's too distressed over the disappearance of Cinna to do much speaking or silence filling like she used to. Not that the escort minds, it's just the loneliness is starting to get to her and being a caretaker to Peeta is already taking a large enough toll on her state of mind. She didn't need to be looking after Portia in her catatonic state as well.

District 12's escort settles her self between Portia and Peeta, curling her bare feet up to her bottom and leaning on Portia's shoulder. It's near midnight in the Capitol, but the sun is shining brightly in the arena. Effie watches as Finnick and Katniss go off to retrieve water, leaving Haymitch, Johanna and Katniss on the beach.

_Haymitch_. Effie's heart flutters at the sight of him. His time spent in the arena has certainly made him stronger and definitely nicer to look at. His skin is still jaundice from his detox and scabbed over pink from the poisonous fog, but he's healthier and had put on a bit of muscle. He actually regained a bit of his boyish features, sitting cross-legged in the sand and teasing Johanna about her desperate attempts to win the heart of the Capitol darling, Finnick Odair. His filthy dark hair had grown way past the normal amount, long bangs becoming a personal visor for his silver eyes. Effie knows it's wrong, but she can't help but note just how damn sexy he looks.

Haymitch is making a raunchy joke about fish smells when a scream echoes through the onscreen atmosphere. Effie doesn't recognize it, but Haymitch seems to place it instantly and he's immediately bolting towards the direction of Katniss and Finnick, a throwing knife grasped tightly in each fist.

Johanna attempts to follow after him, but Beetee slows her down and she can't make it without dragging him along. By the time she does get to the opening trees that the former District 12 mentor ran through, she runs face-first into an invisible panel, blood smearing from her nose. This sends alarms going off in Effie's head. It was a forcefield, yes, but Johanna hadn't been electrocuted or anything of the sort. Not to mention Haymitch had literally just ran through it.

Another round screams blast from the speakers but they only settle in Effie's mind when they begin to call out for Katniss. Horror wells in her chest and she throws herself at the television, her palms flat against the glass screen. _They've murdered Prim_, she thinks in horror. _They've killed an innocent little girl._

Another two voices - that of Annie Cresta and Katniss' cousin - enter the mix and Effie begins to panic. The Gamemakers couldn't possibly have put new tributes in the arena as a twist... could they? And even if they did, why a Victor and an average civilian? Why not just civilians or just new Victors? Just what the hell was going on here?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, before there is any unrest," the concerned voice of Caesar interrupts, crashing Effie's train of thought. In the right hand corner of the screen, a small bubble shows him and Claudius Templesmith sitting solemnly at their narrative desks. "These voices are merely tampered with, and nobody has been harmed in the making of them. A bit of District 3 science, that's all folks. It's a simple method, really. Cassius, would you like to demonstrate?"

The camera pans to a young gamemaker who nods, pulling up a tiny holographic screen and selecting something that Effie can't quite see. Her eyes flit away from the gamemaker to the television, where Katniss murders a screaming jabberjay and calls out for Peeta.

"We've taken clips of young Primrose," Cassius announces, broadcasting the audio of one of Prim's many on-cameras appearances. "and edited it to make it sound like screams. This year, we've decided that Victors know how to endure the physical strains of the arena, but to be a proper Victor, you must be able to endure the emotional and mental trials as well. Now, if you would just watch."

The gamemaker shows a clip of Katniss coming home from Victory Tour, with a bubbly Prim running into her arms and screaming her name in joy. After a bit of splicing from Cassius, _Katniss! I'm so glad you're home!_ becomes _Katniss! It hurts, please come home!_, and is delivered into the arena. On screen, Katniss throws herself at the glass forcefield and Johanna desperately tries to soothe her from behind it.

"Shall we show another example, Cassius?"

"Yes, which shall I use?" The young boy asks, smiling at Claudius like this is just some pleasant conversation and not tampering with the memories and emotions of others. Effie never been more repulsed by her city.

"Certainly not Annie's. It'd be too easy to take screams from her Games! What do you have in store for Haymitch?"

"Excellent choice, Mr. Templesmith." Cassius does a bit more typing and clicking before a small clip of Haymitch and her arguing over sponsorships is shown. Effie's cheeks burn in embarrassment and she looks around the penthouse. Were there really cameras in the penthouse? If so, what else did the Capitol know?

Again, Cassius does his editing and dices her words, so that _Haymitch, I need you to help me with the tributes_ becomes _Haymitch, help me!_

"I'll send it right into the arena. Observe." Caesar, Cassius and Claudius disappear from the corner of the screen and the arena audio fades back in.

"Haymitch! Help me! Haymitch, I need you to help me! It hurts, Haymitch! Please!" A jabberjay yells. Effie squeaks, her mutilated accent terrifying her. Had the Capitol really been able to edit something that gruesome out of a meaningless argument? They couldn't do that, that had to violate... something! Some sort of law!

On screen, Haymitch whips around. Panic washes over his face and he screams in pain, launching a knife towards the trees. It knocks down a Jabberjay, but another just replaces it. The Capitol is brutal in it's torture.

"You let her go! Effie! Let her go! Oh god, Effs! I'm sorry! Please! Don't hurt her anymore! I'll do anything! Please!" Haymitch's voice is choked with tears as he whirls in a circle, screaming at each of the birds individually.

"I'm right here," Effie sobs, before biting her fist to hold back a scream. How could they do this to him? Why were they torturing him?

Bird-Effie screams in agony before starting up again. "Haymitch, it burns! Please! Haymitch! Haymitch please! Save me! Please god, save me!"

"Effie, oh jesus! What are they doing to you?" Effie's lover drops to his knees in the grass, tears running down his cheeks. "Effie please... please... don't hurt my Effie... I'll do whatever you need... I don't care... just don't hurt her... she's all I have..."

"Haymitch! Haymitch! Please! Please don't let me die! Please, I need you! Help me! Help me!" A jabberjay lands on Haymitch's shoulder, screaming in his ear. The victor grabs the bird and rips it apart with his hands, throwing it's remains to the ground. Another replaces it's predecessor on his shoulder and Haymitch roars in pain.

"Stop hurting her, you bastards! Stop it! Effs..." Haymitch buries his face between his knees, so no nearby microphones catch up on the audio. His personal microphone - the one attached to his shirt - catches the final words perfectly however.

"Effs... I'm sorry... I love you... I'm sorry..."

"I love you too, Haymitch," Effie whispers, removing her fist from her mouth and placing that same hand against the screen. "and I'll give them hell for this."


End file.
